After 15 years away from the crude tanker sector, Tor Olav Troim is about to return in a big way.
His private Magni Partners is preparing to order a pair of dual-fuel VLCCs, which will be able to run on LNG and conventional bunkers, for delivery in 2026 and 2027 at a shipyard that he declined to identify.
Troim revealed his plans during an on-stage interview with Poten chairman Michael Tusiani during the annual Marine Money Week conference in New York, and elaborated in a short interview with TradeWinds after the session.
The Norwegian told TradeWinds that he expects the tankers to cost in the range of $130m owing to the dual-fuel propulsion specifications.
In a wide-ranging interview with Tusiani, Troim ran through a whirlwind of topics including his work in the floating LNG sector, his experience with former boss and business partner John Fedriksen, and his thoughts on environmental, social and corporate governance protocols in investment.
But it was Troim’s comment on the tanker order that made news, seemingly coming out of the blue as he discussed earlier days in the market with Fredriksen and public company Frontline.
He said he was “bullish in 1995 and 1996, and we almost went bankrupt twice in 1998 and 2001” before a peak tanker market kicked in between 2003 and 2008.
“Around 2005 and 2006, I knew we’d made it, it worked out and I decided to leave it to others,” he said. “I haven’t looked at crude since. But it’s starting to get interesting. We are in the process of ordering two VLCCs for delivery starting in 2026. After 15 years, I’m getting bullish.”
Troim is probably most prominent these days as the chairman of Golar LNG, which has the lead role in developing floating LNG production units.
But the serial entrepreneur had been at the head of some 19 companies, and he is currently a backer of New York-listed bulker owner Himalaya Shipping.
Speaking again of the tanker sector, Troim said he expects to see an extended period that will rival the super-cycle experienced by the market between 2003 and 2008.
“I’m quite sure the upturn we have in front of us is stronger than 2003 and 2008,” he told Tusiani.
“The whole Fredriksen fortune was created in those five years. Now it’s coming again. If you want to play the cycle, you’d better go in the beginning.”
